Issue 78: June 11, 2001

Current immigration policy is the moral equivalent of leaving a fat wallet in plain view on the front seat of an unlocked car, and then booby-trapping the door handle.

+== TIME OUT PROJECT ==+

The June 7 segment of ABC’s Nightline focused on the Mexican government’s attempts to politicize the estimated 20 million Mexicans and Mexican-Americans living in the United States. Aside from its fatalistic tone, it was a good piece.

The segment included a comment by a woman in the Mexican state of Puebla who asserted that she fully intends to illegally enter the United States. She wants her children to get a good education, she said.

And why not? A new bill introduced in Congress (H.R.1918) May 21 by Chris Cannon (UT) and co-sponsored by Howard Berman (CA) would allow states to force taxpayers to subsidize the educations of "undocumented" college students. With this, and the abundance of services Americans already provide the "undocumented," the woman from Puebla would almost stand guilty of being a bad mother if she DIDN’T take advantage of American hand-outs.

Unfortunately for the Mexican mom, there is still one significant obstacle she faces in getting Americans to pay for her children’s educations: Americans. They are not quite ready yet to let absolutely everyone in the world exploit the nation’s groaning educational system.

The vast majority of Americans persist in believing that the United States is, in fact, a nation, and not some kind of shining economic free-for-all on a hill. Furthermore, they insist, nations have boundaries — boundaries over which the citizens have the right to decide who and how many may pass.

With billions of people poorer — much poorer — than the average Mexican, the world contains many more potential immigrants than the United States is able — or willing — to accept.

Thus the dilemma of the border.
__________
Majority of world’s billions much poorer than the average Mexican
http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/fields/gdp_-_per_capita.html

Cannon Seeks to Ease Restrictions For College-Minded Immigrants
http://www.sltrib.com/06052001/utah/103225.htm

+== TAKE POSITIVE ACTION ==+

On May 24, 14 people died of exposure in the Arizona desert while trying to illegally enter the United States. There were nearly 500 such deaths last year. This is a needless tragedy that no humane people can accept.

So where does the blame lie? With Congress.

It lies with Congressman Cannon and Congressman Berman who offer the reward of education for the children of those who illegally enter the United States (as long as they bring their foreign-born children along on the dangerous border-crossing). And the blame lies with Congressman Gutierrez of Illinois, who has offered a blanket amnesty for the estimated 11 million foreign nationals illegally in the United States. And the blame lies with the 336 members of Congress who voted on May 21 to extend the marriage amnesty known as 245i.

The blame, in short, lies with every Congressperson who refuses to treat illegal residency in the United States as illegal.

You can write Congressmen Cannon and Berman (and your own Representative) and tell them, whatever their good intentions, to stop enticing poor foreigners to risk crossing the border with the promise — if they make it — of education (and health care, and jobs, and amnesties, and drivers’ licenses, etc.). The chaos and death at the borders must stop.

Representative Chris Cannon
http://www.chriscannon.org/talktome.html

Representative Howard Berman
howard.berman@mail.house.gov

Special note: Representative Tancredo (CO) has been doing brave work on the floor of the House using great stuff from Numbersusa (http://www.numbersusa.com/). He even recommended from the floor his colleagues visit the ProjectUSA website! How is that for courage?

+== QUOTE OF THE WEEK ==+

"In 2050, you guys will be the majority. Your children will have political control — we hope — of this country. But the exchange of power is not going to be pretty."

Peter Vogel, social studies teacher, to his immigrant students
Washington-Lee High School
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A94033-2001May29.html

+==EMAIL OF THE WEEK==+

I feel the single greatest driving force behind immigration (and the resulting poverty, illiteracy and crime) is the ownership of our politicians by Corporate America and other special interest groups.

Thank you for all your work,

Kent Greening

Tags:   Berman · border deaths · Cannon · Congress · Gutierrez · mexicoNo Comments